Short-lived joy: (From left) Rodrigo Holgado, Jon Iranzabal, Joao Figueiredo and Imanol Machuca pose for the cameras during training. — Photo by FAM
PETALING JAYA: Sports lawyer Richard Wee says the seven players players embroiled in the forged-documents scandal may consider taking legal action against the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), but warns that any such lawsuit will be extremely difficult to win – and may backfire.
Richard, one of Malaysia’s sports law practitioners and also an arbitrator for the International Cycling Union (UCI), said players could attempt to sue FAM for alleged negligence in handling their documentation submitted to FIFA.
“It’s possible that they could allege that FAM were negligent in managing their submissions. But it will be a narrow and difficult case to prove,” he said.
Richard Wee
He added that the reverse is also true: FAM could initiate action against the players alleging misrepresentation.
“FAM can turn around and say: you claimed Malaysian heritage, you said your grandparents were Malaysian, but you turned out not to be Malaysian. You misled us.”
Both parties, he said, may also pursue action against the agent involved, as all sides have already shifted blame toward intermediaries.
But in Richard’s view, a legal war between FAM, players and agents would serve only to make everyone “look desperate and will not benefit anyone.”
Richard also pointed out a largely overlooked dimension: criminal liability.
Since all seven footballers are now Malaysian citizens, they fall under Malaysian penal law.
“Police can investigate them under the Penal Code for forgery-related offences,” he said. “FAM could also be implicated depending on findings.”
Commenting on FIFA’s appeal committee’s motivated decision, which upheld hefty sanctions on FAM and the players, Richard said the decision was “very thorough” and the appeal was headed by experienced legal minds, including a former advisor to former United States President Barack Obama.
He noted that the committee examined every submission, from the suspended FAM secretary-general - whose suspension FIFA described as a “publicity stunt” - to the controversial birth certificates.
While the committee acknowledged that Malaysia’s National Registration Department issued temporary birth documents, it emphasised that whoever provided the underlying documents to NRD bore responsibility for furnishing insufficient or fraudulent material.
Richard said the heart of the decision lies in FIFA’s reliance on strict liability and the sports-law standard of proof known as “comfortable satisfaction”.
“Even if FAM or the players claim innocence, the document itself is forged,” he said.
““Under Article 22, that triggers sanctions. Intent doesn’t matter - benefit does.”
Sports arbitrators, he added, need only be “comfortably satisfied” that wrongdoing occurred - a threshold between criminal and civil courts.”
The appeal committee went through each player individually and delivered findings against FAM that Richard described as “damning”.
Richard believes FAM face a difficult path in their planned appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
“The CAS panel consist of specialised sports lawyers who may entertain technical arguments,” he said.
He anticipates that FAM may rely on technical interpretations, possibly arguing that national registry-issued documents are valid government documents and should not fall under Article 22.
However, he cautioned against speculation and said the wider public should simply expect a technical defence.
Richard concluded by calling for accountability, describing the episode as a collective failure.
“Our country’s reputation is on the line. Sponsors, media, foreign officials as they will view us differently.
“Why were we put in this position? Where is the pride? Where is our dignity?” he said.
